When you ride a city bus, safety feels like an invisible infrastructure – something you only notice when it fails. In Europe’s crowded urban centers, pedestrians, cyclists, and scooter riders are “vulnerable road users.” Warsaw-based AutonomyNow, a leading ADAS technology startup, is transforming that invisible layer of safety into intelligent, visible protection. Through advanced AI-driven driver assistance systems, the company is helping professional bus drivers safeguard public roads and support Europe’s transition toward Vision Zero.
Founding a Startup at the Right Regulatory Moment
Founded in 2020 by Konrad Kostrzewa and Michal Wendeker, AutonomyNow recognized a crucial opportunity ahead of the European General Safety Regulation (GSR2). “We decided to address safety in city buses because we saw a clear and imminent change with the new GSR2,” explains Kostrzewa. “Smaller and mid-sized bus manufacturers didn’t have the resources to develop advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in-house. That gave us a strong reason to act.”
Vision Zero and Aligning with Europe’s Shift Toward Safer Mobility
This foresight positioned AutonomyNow at the heart of a massive market shift. With European cities accelerating toward autonomous public transport and strict ADAS requirements coming into force, the company’s mission aligns perfectly with new regulatory and technological trends.
Europe’s movement toward Vision Zero – eliminating road fatalities through more innovative infrastructure and technology – has created the ideal moment for AutonomyNow. “AI-based perception and affordable edge computing have matured enough to make advanced systems feasible for everyone – not just luxury cars,” says Kostrzewa. “For public transport operators, adopting ADAS is both a necessity and a competitive advantage.”
The ADAS System by AutonomyNow™
The company’s flagship innovation, the ADAS System by AutonomyNowTM, is explicitly designed for city buses and heavy vehicles. Using radar, camera data, and neural-network-enhanced AI models, it provides real-time assistance and situational awareness for professional drivers.
Its core safety features include:
- Pedestrian and cyclist detection, reducing collisions with vulnerable road users
- Blind-spot monitoring for safer lane maneuvers
- Forward-collision detection and Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB)
- Lane-departure and driver-attention monitoring
- Intelligent speed assistance ensures compliance with urban speed limits These features position AutonomyNow as a leader in AI transportation safety and a pioneer in the ADAS for the public transit market.
Overcoming Industry Skepticism
Like many deep-tech startups, AutonomyNow faced skepticism in a conservative automotive industry. “Our biggest early challenge was convincing established manufacturers to work with a young startup,” recalls Kostrzewa. “It took months of testing, demonstrations, and integration with multiple vehicle architectures to prove our reliability.”
Expanding Into the Future of Commercial Transport
Their persistence paid off. Early prototypes outperformed competing ADAS solutions, and official certification confirmed AutonomyNow’s compliance with EU and UN safety standards. “That’s when we knew we’d gone from a promising concept to a market-ready, certified safety product,” says Kostrzewa.
AutonomyNow’s technology now meets European regulations for blind-spot detection, AEB, and other key safety systems, but this is only the beginning. “Our long-term vision is to go beyond warnings,” says Kostrzewa. “We want to build AI-driven assistance systems that actively help control vehicles and move toward autonomous mobility.”
With expansion plans into heavy-duty trucks and commercial fleets, AutonomyNow is solidifying its role as a European leader in ADAS innovation.
